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I am the nation’s only Judgment Broker, and I am not a lawyer. My articles are my opinions, and not legal advice. If you ever need any legal advice or a strategy to use, please contact a lawyer.

If you know where your judgment debtor banks, a bank levy is often the simplest way to recover a judgment. A bank levy, called a garnishment in some states, happens when the Sheriff or their agents (and sometimes also registered process servers), with proper instructions and payment, instructs a bank to seize your judgment debtor’s bank account funds to help pay what is owed toward satisfying your judgment.

If your judgment debtor has enough money deposited, when their account(s) are frozen to satisfy your judgment; you might get your whole judgment recovered with one bank levy. However, usually, judgment debtors have less in their bank account than what is required to fully satisfy your judgment. You may have to keep trying more enforcement strategies, to recover the rest of your judgment.

As important as how much money is in your judgment debtor’s bank account is; much depends on the laws of your state. While a few states restrict or do not allow bank levies, most allow them.

Bank levies require specific forms and documents. Levy information can be found online, including laws, articles, and other resources. Your local court or Sheriff may have laws and policies on their web sites, including the required forms.

The costs to levy a judgment debtor’s bank account varies from state to state, and sometimes also by county. You must get permission from the court, and buy a writ of execution or its equivalent from them. Then you must pay the Sheriff and sometimes also a registered process server. In California, this costs an average of $65 to $165, depending on which county. There are never any refunds for any fees you pay.

Usually, the biggest challenge is finding out where your judgment debtor banks. In some states and/or banks, due to old laws written when typewriters ruled the Earth; one must levy the exact branch where the debtor’s account was first opened at.

Make sure to double-check your information, especially when your debtor has a common name, or shares their name or SSN with relatives. If you levy the wrong person’s account, you must return their money, or ask the Sheriff to return their money. You should also pay them something extra, more than what is required to cover their hassles and incurred costs due to your error. Another potential levy complication is, sometimes even when you levy the correct debtor’s bank account, some will lie and say you have the wrong person.

Bank levies do not always work, and can fail for many reasons including no money was in the account, overdrawn accounts, the bank claiming there is no such account, name variations, SSN sharing, DBAs, trusts, bank shared ownership issues, typographic errors, technicalities, and timing issues.

Often, the Sheriff requires you to type a document with instructions to the bank, where you ask them to freeze any and all accounts that your judgment debtor has at their bank. One should word their instructions to include all accounts matching the name and Social Security number of the judgment debtor.

If the stars align, and your paperwork is right, and your instructions are clear and specify what is required; the bank should freeze all the accounts belonging to the judgment debtor, including checking accounts, savings, safe deposit boxes, etc.

You will need to find out the name and address of the banks, credit unions, or other financial institutions where your judgment debtor has money deposited. Once you know that, you fill out the forms, write a few checks to the Sheriff and the court, and perhaps also a process server. Then you wait weeks or months to learn the levy results, or for your check to arrive.

If your judgment debtor is a corporation, their bank accounts can be levied too. It is often easier to discover where a business banks, than it is to find out where a person banks.

When your judgment debtor finds out that their account is frozen, they may be angry. They will also know you are serious about getting paid. Often, when a partial recovery is made with a bank levy, discussions about payment plans begin. One common agreement offered by judgment owners is: “No more bank levies will happen, as long as the judgment debtor stays current on a payment plan”.

It is a good idea to familiarize yourself with the terms and conditions of the financial institution and when fees will be debited to your account. Make sure to always have sufficient funds available for fees and charges.

The fees are typically charged when a particular service is used and at the end of the month, such as:

Deposit and withdrawals made over the counter: a fee is charged per transaction.

Each deposit and withdrawal that is not over the counter is charged a fee.

Debit transactions are usually charged a fee.

An account service fee is typically charged every month.

A fee is usually charged for every electronic debit transaction.

A monthly account keeping fee can be charged.

Transaction fees are charged if you exceed the number of fee free transactions with withdrawals and staff assisted deposits.

A fee is charged on all cheque deposits.

You can be charged a dishonor fee if there is insufficient funds in your account to cover a cheque or direct debit.

Internet banking can save you time and can also simplify your accounting process. You can view the account balance, make payments and transfer money from anywhere at any time. The Australian banking system is excellent and allows you to pay wages, debts and bills in an efficient manner. You will find that banks offer different accounts and the fees and charges may differ from bank to bank.

Many banks offer unlimited electronic transactions and cash withdrawals free of transaction fees. You can compare the benefits of different accounts and choose an option that will suit your business best. It is a good idea to familiarize yourself with the terms and conditions and when fees will be debited to your account. It is also important to have sufficient funds available in your business bank account for fees and charges.

Business Bank Accounts

Business bank accounts in Australia offer unlimited electronic transactions, such as access to your account at ATM’s, Telephone banking, Internet banking, Mobile phone banking or at any branch.

Accounts typically provide effective ways to manage finances. Internet banking can save you time and can also simplify your accounting process. You can view the account balance, make payments and transfer money from anywhere at any time. Your account can also be linked to an overdraft facility.

A business bank account can have multiple card holders. The debit cards can be held by non-authorized signatories or by primary cardholders who are signatories to the account. Withdrawal limits are per card per calendar day, but you can increase the limit at your bank. Most ATM machines offer a maximum cash amount per withdrawal.
Internet banking and mobile phone banking enables you to manage your money.

If you travel or have to be out of the office, you can still obtain easy access to your account. Business bank accounts typically provide effective ways to manage finances. Internet banking can save you time and can also simplify your accounting process. You can view the account balance, make payments and transfer money from anywhere at any time.

It is important to have sufficient funds available in your business bank account for fees and charges.

Investment banks help private as well as public companies and organizations to gathers funds in both debt and equity capital markets. These banks were originally founded in order to raise capital and provide guidance on corporate financial strategies, such as acquisitions and mergers. Investment banks assume many different roles such as handing safety issues, providing institutional and public investors with brokerage services, providing corporate clients with financial advice, offering guidance on acquisition deals and mergers and more. These days, you can also find banks to have ventured into bridge financing, foreign currency exchange and private banking. Know about the two main types of investment banking companies India.

Basic bank for invest

This kind of bank tends to issue bonds and stocks to customers for a predetermined sum. Then the bank invests this sum which has been used by the client for buying bonds and stocks. Such types of investments vary across different banks. In the nations where this type of investment is permitted, investment banks come with networks of lending and financial organizations that they can derive profit from. Other banks also make investments in construction and property development. Customers with bonds and stocks would tend get payments from the amount of profit that is made on the sum that they have invested for a particular time period.

Both the investment bank and the client derive profits from the sum initially invested by the client. As these types of banks are completely familiar with the trade methods, they are often consulted about corporate investment activities like acquisitions and mergers by both big and small corporations and business houses.

Merchant bank for investing

This is the other kind of investment bank. Such kinds of banks participate in trade financing and provide business ventures with capita in the form of shares and not loans. These banks have their businesses based on how secure shares are. Such types of institutions only fund those business ventures which have only started in the world of business. Generally, startup merchant companies do not get any financing. Merchant banks can be regarded only as investment banks which are ready to invest some amount of the capital of the organization. The money is put in the form of an equity investment. The company acts like research and advisory firms in India into the transaction and offers advice. In case you want trade financing, you will like to get in touch with a merchant bank rather than an investment bank.

The primary function of these banks consists of offering financial services and advice to individuals as well as corporate houses. Such kinds of banks function like a type of intermediary between the consumers of the securities and the issuers of the capital. Various companies issue these kinds of securities in order to gather funds in the stock markets. Merchant banks offer better monetary solutions and options to the customers, and can assist customers to gather money via low-cost resources. These banks are able to revive the economic health of sick firms.

Like all Metrics Systems, Bank Metrics are a set way for banks to quantify their performance. Bank Metrics, like Performance Metrics is to be formulated according to the banks goals as well as the standards that they set for themselves. Banks differ in Goals. Some banks may see customer turnover as basis of success as opposed to some banks that view revenue as item by which they measure their success rate. There are several categories that help banks organize their metrics system report. Below are a few categories that can be found in a bank metrics report. Knowledge of the following will help Financing Heads and Company leaders to better understand the reports that are handed to them.

General Ledger Measurements can be found in a Bank Metric Report. A General Ledger Measurements is considered to be a fundamental analysis that businesses can perform when they are on a normal operating cycle. The data gathered here is noted down on balance sheets and information on the Bank’s income statement. This type of analysis is necessary as an indicator of the overall performance of a Bank; it also gives an idea of the financial status of the organization. General Ledger Measurements presents the following data: Average Balance, Income generated from Interests, Non Interest Income and Others.

Account Measurements are also found under a Bank Metrics report. This generally includes the following data: Number of Accounts, Customers as well as the number of households that avail of the services of the Bank under scrutiny. It also includes both the Average Balance and the Ending Balance. Account Measurement, unlike General Ledger Measurements can be conducted on any given time frame. This subtype of bank metrics is also able to cross the border of all types of banks from remote branches to regional organizations.

Another Sub category that is found in a Bank Metrics Report is that of Costing Measurements. Costing measurement is an analysis of the costs of the Bank in General; this subtype gives a view of the Banks income and expenses whether they are operating or non-operating.

Risk Calculation and Measurement is also presented in a typical Bank Metrics report. This will help Bank management to know what their expected losses should be on certain areas. It also discusses general and specific market risks. The General Market risks that are presented by a Bank Metrics report will give banks the opportunity to make similar comparisons. This means that they can compare their actual and expected loss rates with other banks that function the same way as they do.

Bank Metrics and Analytics can be performed by firms that specialize in this activity. Delegating this task to firms will take a huge weight off the shoulders of a bank’s finance office. Specialized firms will formulate customized bank metrics that is designed for the needs of a specific bank. Firms also lure clients by promising a ‘quick view’ report. This means that the data they have collected is easily viewed and understood by Bank personnel that are to review the reports.

After the market meltdown of 2008, and the sudden realization that our Banks were exposed and faced bankruptcy, our Governments stepped in and bailed many of these Banks out with taxpayers money, effectively taking over their debts.

The old pre-crash Banking system was complex, large Banks became internationalized with the Global Economy, and often used depositors savings to hand out loans to consumers outside their own national boundaries. As these banks grew, so did the need for profits, and credit. This ended when markets realized these profits were based on overvalued property prices and stocks in the US and the UK Technically leaving these Banking giants exposed to toxic debts, and the personal debts of creditors due to over-extended credit.

Governments stepped in buying shares in some cases or in other cases effectively taking over these banking giants that dominated the old era of fast Globalization.Technically keeping Banks open that lost trillions of dollars in speculating in a false bubble economy.

Many people were angry, those in debt and unable to obtain further credit faced personal bankruptcy, whilst the sudden realization that our Bankers who are traditionally pillars of good money management, had turned out to be as short-sighted and bad at money management as a compulsive gambler in a casino.

But that was then, So what is the future of these Banks?

Many Bailed out or Nationalized Banks are in reality Global Banks. That simply means although they are over exposed in one Country, they may be profitable in another Country. Citibank are a good example of this, with a presence in most Countries in the World.In most cases large Banking concerns have an ‘autonomous’ Branch in each Country, which often means that they are protected nationally, rather then Internationally:

In the last Banking crisis in Argentina, depositors found International Banks closed, and their savings gone. Irrespective of the fact many of these banks were profitable outside Argentina, leading to a trend were Argentineans today prefer to deposit funds in a protected local Bank.

With Governments effectively “owning” many of these International Banks, these overseas “Branches” could be sold off to localized interests. This was the case of Morgan Stanley that sold off its Asian-based Branch to a cartel of local Investors.This should cut the excess fat off these bloated, over-exposed Banks, and bring in additional income that should help to lower their huge debt levels. Therefore technically severing ties of these autonomous regional banks, that still remain profitable, locally.

Selling assets raises money, and could help relieve the burden nationally these failed banks have passed onto Governments via the Taxpayer. More exposed Banks could eventually become 100 percent owned by our Governments. As debts mount, and the banking system is reformed.

Governments in the long-term claim these toxic Banks will be eventually privatized once they are downsized, and profitable sections of these banks are sold off. This depends on an economic recovery, as our Governments technically bought these Banks according to the current share value.Once the share value increases, and exceeds the original price technically these shares could be sold at a profit, bringing in extra revenue to our Governments.In theory this has happened in the past, Indonesia is an example:

After the Asian Crisis of 1998, Indonesia had hundreds of exposed National Banks, that were either merged or taken over by the Government. These Banks were reformed, as local Banking laws governing Banks were. Then many were sold off at a profit to the Government, through the local Stock market.The irony of these Banking reforms were that the Banking giants that are currently broke and indebted in our Countries, took over and bought into many of these Banks.

Therefore Internationalizing the Banking system in Indonesia, although except in the case of ABN Amro, no International Bank in Indonesia has collapsed or been bought out by the National Government.

This action was requested by the IMF that granted Indonesia billions of dollars in emergency loans, loans the current Government are still paying off today. And is probably the modal our Governments are hoping to emulate, in order to save our banks, reform them and eventually sell them off at a profit.

One question still haunts both our Governments and confused taxpayers: What happens if our Economies do not recover?

The effect of huge Bank bailouts has meant that these toxic Banks are in fact owned by our Governments. Many Governments state officially they have not been nationalized, but are technically National property.If a recovery fails to materialize, then Governments can simply take over these Banks officially, by either buying out the remaining minority shareholders or by declaring them National property.

This is the worse scenario, as our Governments officially own our debts and in regards to housing, any property these banks own through private Mortgages.
Private housing today could in fact become National property, with Mortgage payments going straight to the State.

In economic terms if Banks are completely Nationalized, then Governments control the money supply, our debts, businesses and housing. Our Economy would turn into a command economy. We still will “own” our private property, but only if we can repay the debts owed to these new State Banks. In an extreme scenario our Banks could be merged into one single State Bank.

Complete control of the economy by our Governments may be the last option left, in the case of a total economic failure. It could also lead to strict controls on monetary policy, and in Countries worse affected by the Crisis, even a change of currency.

Both of these scenarios are feasible, and much depends on when our Economies start to recover. The new reality we face is that Bank bailouts, have created a dependency on our economy recovering, otherwise we could face living in a State that has been forced to become Communistic in order to survive a complete financial collapse.

Internet banking works in a similar manner to traditional banking, the major difference being the way one is making payments, accessing his account and personal details, and reconciling statements. Rather than visiting the local branch of his bank, the customer uses his computer to complete transactions. Internet and traditional banking have their pros and cons to consider. The choice of online vs. brick-and-mortar banking is often based on one’s lifestyle and priorities.

As a major advantage of internet banking, the customer can accomplish multiple tasks in the comfort of his home. Efficiency is what makes online banking attractive to customers: they can pay bills, move money between different accounts, check multiple accounts, and much more. Banking is fast and saves customers valuable time. Transactions are completed in seconds and one can print out the receipts for his personal records. The customer may access his account at any given part of the day, even during weekends and holidays. Moreover, the online account may be accessed from any place around the world, provided that internet connection is available.

Online bank accounts make banking expedient, convenient, and inexpensive. Many banks charge fewer fees for the online banking services they offer. Furthermore, banks have higher interest rates on savings accounts and certificates of deposit, and offer more financial services and products. Customers don’t need to buy envelopes and stamps, run to the post office at the last minute, and risk being late on their payments. Monthly bank statements and bills can be accessed electronically. Finally, online banking employs sophisticated tools that help manage one’s money and accounts with ease. Despite increased security measures and the availability of anti-virus and anti-spyware programs, identity theft is still a concern. Other threats associated with online banking include phishing and hacking of online accounts.

Time is among the precious commodities, especially for multi-taskers. On the other hand, some people prefer to visit their local bank and interact with the teller in person. Customers can turn to the bank’s special account representative or even to the bank manager. Clients are physically present when cash is handed over to them and when they place valuable items in their safety deposit boxes.

When customers hold their money in banks, they expect to have them available when required. The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation offers coverage of up to $100.000 if banks cannot cover their clients’ accounts. Most banks have increased the level of security by installing more surveillance cameras and hiring a larger number of security guards. With traditional banking, customers are better protected against identity theft. However, security is still a concern with traditional banking. While criminals cannot hold a gun to one’s personal computer, they can rob a bank the traditional way.

Inconvenient locations, fixed schedules, and more limited financial services are some of the disadvantages associated with traditional banking. In contrast to internet banking, customers opting for traditional banking services need to draw money before using it.

The FDIC (Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation) pays up to $100,000 of coverage, in case that a bank cannot cover its accounts (both online and traditional). However, protection from identity theft is an aspect of banking that traditional banks take better care of.

Disclaimer: This article is provided for educational and informational purposes only and should not be considered a substitute for professional and/or financial advice. The information found in this article is provided “AS IS”, and all warranties, express or implied, are disclaimed by the author.

With recent technological advancements in the financial industry, banks throughout the United States (and the rest of the world) continue to search for tools to optimize traditionally manual processes. With administrative costs comprising such a large portion of a bank’s annual expenses, banking software systems that provide effective automation will continue to experience solid growth for decades to come. A major trend among banks is the automation of loan files. As any banker knows, a single file can represent mountains of paperwork and possibly years of work. This article takes a look at the ways banks are using bank imaging technology to streamline the management of loan and credit files.

Questions For Consideration

Before considering your options for loan file automation, it is wise to first review some basic questions about your bank’s current situation. By thinking critically about your bank workflow as it stands today, your financial institution can maximize return on investment. The following questions may be helpful when starting the process of optimization.

How efficient / effective is your current paper loan file system?

How much money does your financial institution spend each year creating and organizing physical files?

How frequently do physical files have to be transferred from one branch to another?

Has your bank every misplaced, damaged, or completely lost a loan file, creating mountains of duplicate administrative work to restore the original files?

Have customers or lending officers ever complained about the length of time it takes to approve or update loan files at your bank?

Loan Approval Process: A Very Good Place to Start

Once you have identified the need to automate your loan process, a wise place to begin is at the very start of the application process. By implementing a banking software system that can manage your loan files from start to finish, your organization will yield the greatest ROI from such a platform. When evaluating the offerings from different banking software companies, it is a good idea to find a system that will integrate with your existing applications, underwriting software, credit analysis platform, and documentation. It is also important to find a system that will provide up to the minute loan status information, electronic routing, and multi-party document viewing rights. Through automated updates to the assigned user, loan status, and approval status, your bank will experience formerly unrealized economies of scale.

Optimizing Your Bank’s Loan Pipeline

With the volume of loans being processed each day in a single bank branch, keeping up with the status of each paper loan file has historically been a challenge for institutions of all sizes. When implementing bank loan software to centralize such activity, it is crucial that your bank select a banking software company that offers a loan pipeline management and reporting tool. Such tools typically offer a customizable dashboard for instant analysis of a bank’s existing loan pipeline. In addition, such platforms should provide a wide variety of reporting options, allowing users to subscribe to email alerts for specified pipeline activity. Also, reports should have the ability to be easily exported to the standard formats, such as.pdf and.csv, allowing deeper analysis by management.

Customize Loan Files for Your Bank Workflow Needs

Perhaps the greatest benefit of automating loan files via bank management software, is the ability to quickly glance at the entire documentation workflow and instantly understand which documents are still missing. As documents are routed from user to user through your bank workflow, users can be automatically notified via email that their action is required. When choosing a banking document management system to streamline your loan filing, it is vital that you go with a vendor that allows you set up unlimited workflow actions in your system. By customizing every workflow action to your bank’s needs, you can ensure that your system will reflect the operational goals of your institution. Such elements to consider in your workflow automation include: managing exceptions, defining user groups, email notification recipients, setting lending limits, etc.

Closing Thoughts – Loan File Digitization

By automating the approval and life cycle of a loan file, your bank can reap significant benefits. Studies have shown that many financial institutions are able to recoup their investment in loan portfolio management software within a twelve to eighteen period. By digitally capturing every action associated with a loan file, banks have been known to save money in the areas of administrative costs, courier / overnight shipping expenses, storage space, and overall productivity.

“Commercial banking” was defined in the previous edition of this book as the activity of a banking institution whose “principal business is to accept deposits, make loans, collect commercial paper, and arrange the transfer of funds.” Under the banking law from the adoption of the Glass-Steagall Act in the 1930s until the beginning of the 1980s, there was a distinct demarcation between commercial banks and other financial institutions, such as investment banks, securities firms, and commercial financial services conglomerates.

AH this is changing. The types of institutions that can engage in traditional commercial banking functions have enlarged as a result of legislation giving additional powers to thrift institutions. The types of activities commercial banks engage in have expanded as a result of legislation at both the state and federal levels and as a result of judicial decisions dismantling parts of the wall erected by the Glass-Steagall Act to keep commercial banks insulated from the risks of dealing in securities. The “nonbank bank” explosion has started a restructuring of the banking market into holding companies capable of offering an array of financial services. In light of these developments, perhaps the most suitable definition is one offered by an English texi: “[B]anks come in all shapes and sizes, with different name tags applied indifferent countries, often quite loosely. Banks make most of their money from the difference between interest rates paid to depositors and charged to borrowers.” Commercial banks are “publicly quoted and profit oriented. They deal directly with the public, taking deposits, making loans and providing a range of financial services from foreign exchange to investment advice. Most countries have settled for between four and ten;” but in the United States there are nearly 15,000 because of “banking laws that have prevented banks operating in more than one state, and in different types of business,..

In addition to commercial banks, there are many specialized depository institutions that have been established to perform specialized roles. Thrift insti­tutions such as savings and loan associations and credit unions are important examples. At their inception, savings and loan associations primarily engaged in home mortgage lending and offering passbook-type savings to consumers. With the enactment of the Depository Institutions Deregulation and Monetary Con­trol Act of 1980, thrifts gained expanded authority to engage in commercial banking activities. Further incorporation into the general banking market has occurred as a result of the restructuring brought about by the financial failures and weakened condition of thrift institutions in the 1980s, which led to changes in the law to encourage the acquisition and merger of weak institutions with stronger financial institutions, including banks. To a great extent, thrift institutions are subject to a regulatory regime similar to that governing commercial banks, and engage in banking functions similar to those of commercial banks. Subsequent chapters discuss how thrifts fit into this regulatory scheme.

There are other specialized consumer-oriented financial companies. Credit unions may be organized under state and federal statutes with the power to maintain customer share accounts against which drafts may be drawn payable i n a manner similar to checks. There are also personal finance loan organizations authorized under the laws of the several states that loan small amounts of money to consumers, often at specially regulated rates that are higher than the usual interest rates allowed. These organizations normally are not deposit-taking institutions but operate with their own capital and credit. Banks often have their own small loan depart­ments to make the same type of loans, and holding companies may have special consumer loan subsidiaries or affiliate companies.

Although trust activities have become a part of the activity of many com­mercial banks,1 this book does not deal with the laws that govern these trustee relationships and activities. The competition for funds has led some banks to offer managed investment accounts through their trust departments similar to those offered by mutual funds and other securities firms. Again, there are trust companies organized under state law that operate by accepting money for the purpose of investment where the beneficial interest in the funds remains in the original owner.

There are other types of banking functions and specialized banks: for exam­ple, reserve banks, which are really bankers’ banks; investment banks, whose chief business is underwriting and dealing in securities, and providing financial advice and aid in corporate acquisitions and mergers; agricultural banks; foreign trade banks; and other specialized banks that have charters to engage in particu­lar types of business. Further, the peculiarities of federal laws regulating bank holding companies have encouraged the proliferation of various financial institutions that have been chartered as full-service banks but that limit their functions to activities such as consumer lending and credit card operations.

Because of the diversity of functions of commercial banks and the variety of depository institutions involved in them, this book does not attempt a compre­hensive survey of all banking activity. Rather, it emphasizes the basic regulatory structure that governs traditional commercial banking institutions and the com­mercial activities associated with accepting deposits, collecting commercial paper, making payments and transferring funds, and engaging in certain credit transactions.

As this introduction indicates, the laws and regulations that govern com­mercial banking are numerous and complex. The various types of financial institutions engaging in commercial banking activities are matched by an equal activities. The Depository Institutions Deregulation and Monetary Control Act of 1980 also gave thrift institutions chartered by the Federal Home Loan Bank Board the author­ity to engage in trust activities under certain conditions. 12 USC § 1464(n) (1982).

In addition, the law governing the transactions of commercial banks is complex. The Uniform Commercial Code has brought a desirable uniformity to the law in many areas, but there are many special purpose statutes, frequently intended to give special consumer protection, that must be taken into account in analyzing banking transactions. There is a growing body of federal law that must be considered along with the state commercial law of the UCC and common law. This book is intended to serve as a beginning guide for the bank officer engaged in these commercial banking transactions and the attorneys called upon to advise in banking matters. It is not a substitute for careful legal counsel, how­ever, and such assistance should be obtained because this book can neither cover all the details applicable in particular matters, especially at the regulatory level, nor report on all the local variations, changes, and new developments. More­over, the facts of a particular situation will vary in ways that may introduce new legal problems or otherwise affect the legal analysis. Obtaining the advice of competent legal counsel is essential.

In an April 7 article in The London Telegraph titled “The G20 Moves the World a Step Closer to a Global Currency,” Ambrose Evans-Pritchard wrote:

“A single clause in Point 19 of the communiqué issued by the G20 leaders amounts to revolution in the global financial order.

“‘We have agreed to support a general SDR allocation which will inject $250bn (£170bn) into the world economy and increase global liquidity,’ it said. SDRs are Special Drawing Rights, a synthetic paper currency issued by the International Monetary Fund that has lain dormant for half a century.

“In effect, the G20 leaders have activated the IMF’s power to create money and begin global ‘quantitative easing’. In doing so, they are putting a de facto world currency into play. It is outside the control of any sovereign body. Conspiracy theorists will love it.”

Indeed they will. The article is subtitled, “The world is a step closer to a global currency, backed by a global central bank, running monetary policy for all humanity.” Which naturally raises the question, who or what will serve as this global central bank, cloaked with the power to issue the global currency and police monetary policy for all humanity? When the world’s central bankers met in Washington last September, they discussed what body might be in a position to serve in that awesome and fearful role. A former governor of the Bank of England stated:

“[T]he answer might already be staring us in the face, in the form of the Bank for International Settlements (BIS). . . . The IMF tends to couch its warnings about economic problems in very diplomatic language, but the BIS is more independent and much better placed to deal with this if it is given the power to do so.”1

And if the vision of a global currency outside government control does not set off conspiracy theorists, putting the BIS in charge of it surely will. The BIS has been scandal-ridden ever since it was branded with pro-Nazi leanings in the 1930s. Founded in Basel, Switzerland, in 1930, the BIS has been called “the most exclusive, secretive, and powerful supranational club in the world.” Charles Higham wrote in his book Trading with the Enemy that by the late 1930s, the BIS had assumed an openly pro-Nazi bias, a theme that was expanded on in a BBC Timewatch film titled “Banking with Hitler” broadcast in 1998.2 In 1944, the American government backed a resolution at the Bretton-Woods Conference calling for the liquidation of the BIS, following Czech accusations that it was laundering gold stolen by the Nazis from occupied Europe; but the central bankers succeeded in quietly snuffing out the American resolution.3

In Tragedy and Hope: A History of the World in Our Time (1966), Dr. Carroll Quigley revealed the key role played in global finance by the BIS behind the scenes. Dr. Quigley was Professor of History at Georgetown University, where he was President Bill Clinton’s mentor. He was also an insider, groomed by the powerful clique he called “the international bankers.” His credibility is heightened by the fact that he actually espoused their goals. He wrote:

“I know of the operations of this network because I have studied it for twenty years and was permitted for two years, in the early 1960’s, to examine its papers and secret records. I have no aversion to it or to most of its aims and have, for much of my life, been close to it and to many of its instruments. . . . [I]n general my chief difference of opinion is that it wishes to remain unknown, and I believe its role in history is significant enough to be known.”

Quigley wrote of this international banking network:

“[T]he powers of financial capitalism had another far-reaching aim, nothing less than to create a world system of financial control in private hands able to dominate the political system of each country and the economy of the world as a whole. This system was to be controlled in a feudalist fashion by the central banks of the world acting in concert, by secret agreements arrived at in frequent private meetings and conferences. The apex of the system was to be the Bank for International Settlements in Basel, Switzerland, a private bank owned and controlled by the world’s central banks which were themselves private corporations.”

The key to their success, said Quigley, was that the international bankers would control and manipulate the money system of a nation while letting it appear to be controlled by the government. The statement echoed one made in the eighteenth century by the patriarch of what would become the most powerful banking dynasty in the world. Mayer Amschel Bauer Rothschild famously said in 1791:

“Allow me to issue and control a nation’s currency, and I care not who makes its laws.”

Mayer’s five sons were sent to the major capitals of Europe – London, Paris, Vienna, Berlin and Naples – with the mission of establishing a banking system that would be outside government control. The economic and political systems of nations would be controlled not by citizens but by bankers, for the benefit of bankers. Eventually, a privately-owned “central bank” was established in nearly every country; and this central banking system has now gained control over the economies of the world. Central banks have the authority to print money in their respective countries, and it is from these banks that governments must borrow money to pay their debts and fund their operations. The result is a global economy in which not only industry but government itself runs on “credit” (or debt) created by a banking monopoly headed by a network of private central banks; and at the top of this network is the BIS, the “central bank of central banks” in Basel.

BEHIND THE CURTAIN

For many years the BIS kept a very low profile, operating behind the scenes in an abandoned hotel. It was here that decisions were reached to devalue or defend currencies, fix the price of gold, regulate offshore banking, and raise or lower short-term interest rates. In 1977, however, the BIS gave up its anonymity in exchange for more efficient headquarters. The new building has been described as “an eighteen story-high circular skyscraper that rises above the medieval city like some misplaced nuclear reactor.” It quickly became known as the “Tower of Basel.” Today the BIS has governmental immunity, pays no taxes, and has its own private police force.4 It is, as Mayer Rothschild envisioned, above the law.

The BIS is now composed of 55 member nations, but the club that meets regularly in Basel is a much smaller group; and even within it, there is a hierarchy. In a 1983 article in Harper’s Magazine called “Ruling the World of Money,” Edward Jay Epstein wrote that where the real business gets done is in “a sort of inner club made up of the half dozen or so powerful central bankers who find themselves more or less in the same monetary boat” – those from Germany, the United States, Switzerland, Italy, Japan and England. Epstein said:

“The prime value, which also seems to demarcate the inner club from the rest of the BIS members, is the firm belief that central banks should act independently of their home governments. . . . A second and closely related belief of the inner club is that politicians should not be trusted to decide the fate of the international monetary system.”

In 1974, the Basel Committee on Banking Supervision was created by the central bank Governors of the Group of Ten nations (now expanded to twenty). The BIS provides the twelve-member Secretariat for the Committee. The Committee, in turn, sets the rules for banking globally, including capital requirements and reserve controls. In a 2003 article titled “The Bank for International Settlements Calls for Global Currency,” Joan Veon wrote:

“The BIS is where all of the world’s central banks meet to analyze the global economy and determine what course of action they will take next to put more money in their pockets, since they control the amount of money in circulation and how much interest they are going to charge governments and banks for borrowing from them. . . .

“When you understand that the BIS pulls the strings of the world’s monetary system, you then understand that they have the ability to create a financial boom or bust in a country. If that country is not doing what the money lenders want, then all they have to do is sell its currency.”5

THE CONTROVERSIAL BASEL ACCORDS

The power of the BIS to make or break economies was demonstrated in 1988, when it issued a Basel Accord raising bank capital requirements from 6% to 8%. By then, Japan had emerged as the world’s largest creditor; but Japan’s banks were less well capitalized than other major international banks. Raising the capital requirement forced them to cut back on lending, creating a recession in Japan like that suffered in the U.S. today. Property prices fell and loans went into default as the security for them shriveled up. A downward spiral followed, ending with the total bankruptcy of the banks. The banks had to be nationalized, although that word was not used in order to avoid criticism.6

Among other collateral damage produced by the Basel Accords was a spate of suicides among Indian farmers unable to get loans. The BIS capital adequacy standards required loans to private borrowers to be “risk-weighted,” with the degree of risk determined by private rating agencies; and farmers and small business owners could not afford the agencies’ fees. Banks therefore assigned 100 percent risk to the loans, and then resisted extending credit to these “high-risk” borrowers because more capital was required to cover the loans. When the conscience of the nation was aroused by the Indian suicides, the government, lamenting the neglect of farmers by commercial banks, established a policy of ending the “financial exclusion” of the weak; but this step had little real effect on lending practices, due largely to the strictures imposed by the BIS from abroad.7

Similar complaints have come from Korea. An article in the December 12, 2008 Korea Times titled “BIS Calls Trigger Vicious Cycle” described how Korean entrepreneurs with good collateral cannot get operational loans from Korean banks, at a time when the economic downturn requires increased investment and easier credit:

“‘The Bank of Korea has provided more than 35 trillion won to banks since September when the global financial crisis went full throttle,’ said a Seoul analyst, who declined to be named. ‘But the effect is not seen at all with the banks keeping the liquidity in their safes. They simply don’t lend and one of the biggest reasons is to keep the BIS ratio high enough to survive,’ he said. . . .

“Chang Ha-joon, an economics professor at Cambridge University, concurs with the analyst. ‘What banks do for their own interests, or to improve the BIS ratio, is against the interests of the whole society. This is a bad idea,’ Chang said in a recent telephone interview with Korea Times.”

In a May 2002 article in The Asia Times titled “Global Economy: The BIS vs. National Banks,” economist Henry C K Liu observed that the Basel Accords have forced national banking systems “to march to the same tune, designed to serve the needs of highly sophisticated global financial markets, regardless of the developmental needs of their national economies.” He wrote:

“[N]ational banking systems are suddenly thrown into the rigid arms of the Basel Capital Accord sponsored by the Bank of International Settlement (BIS), or to face the penalty of usurious risk premium in securing international interbank loans. . . . National policies suddenly are subjected to profit incentives of private financial institutions, all members of a hierarchical system controlled and directed from the money center banks in New York. The result is to force national banking systems to privatize . . . .

“BIS regulations serve only the single purpose of strengthening the international private banking system, even at the peril of national economies. . . . The IMF and the international banks regulated by the BIS are a team: the international banks lend recklessly to borrowers in emerging economies to create a foreign currency debt crisis, the IMF arrives as a carrier of monetary virus in the name of sound monetary policy, then the international banks come as vulture investors in the name of financial rescue to acquire national banks deemed capital inadequate and insolvent by the BIS.”

Ironically, noted Liu, developing countries with their own natural resources did not actually need the foreign investment that trapped them in debt to outsiders:

“Applying the State Theory of Money [which assumes that a sovereign nation has the power to issue its own money], any government can fund with its own currency all its domestic developmental needs to maintain full employment without inflation.”

When governments fall into the trap of accepting loans in foreign currencies, however, they become “debtor nations” subject to IMF and BIS regulation. They are forced to divert their production to exports, just to earn the foreign currency necessary to pay the interest on their loans. National banks deemed “capital inadequate” have to deal with strictures comparable to the “conditionalities” imposed by the IMF on debtor nations: “escalating capital requirement, loan writeoffs and liquidation, and restructuring through selloffs, layoffs, downsizing, cost-cutting and freeze on capital spending.” Liu wrote:

“Reversing the logic that a sound banking system should lead to full employment and developmental growth, BIS regulations demand high unemployment and developmental degradation in national economies as the fair price for a sound global private banking system.”

THE LAST DOMINO TO FALL?

While banks in developing nations were being penalized for falling short of the BIS capital requirements, large international banks managed to escape the rules, although they actually carried enormous risk because of their derivative exposure. The mega-banks succeeded in avoiding the Basel rules by separating the “risk” of default out from the loans and selling it off to investors, using a form of derivative known as “credit default swaps.”

However, it was not in the game plan that U.S. banks should escape the BIS net. When they managed to sidestep the first Basel Accord, a second set of rules was imposed known as Basel II. The new rules were established in 2004, but they were not levied on U.S. banks until November 2007, the month after the Dow passed 14,000 to reach its all-time high. It has been all downhill from there. Basel II had the same effect on U.S. banks that Basel I had on Japanese banks: they have been struggling ever since to survive.8

Basel II requires banks to adjust the value of their marketable securities to the “market price” of the security, a rule called “mark to market.”9 The rule has theoretical merit, but the problem is timing: it was imposed ex post facto, after the banks already had the hard-to-market assets on their books. Lenders that had been considered sufficiently well capitalized to make new loans suddenly found they were insolvent. At least, they would have been insolvent if they had tried to sell their assets, an assumption required by the new rule. Financial analyst John Berlau complained:

“The crisis is often called a ‘market failure,’ and the term ‘mark-to-market’ seems to reinforce that. But the mark-to-market rules are profoundly anti-market and hinder the free-market function of price discovery. . . . In this case, the accounting rules fail to allow the market players to hold on to an asset if they don’t like what the market is currently fetching, an important market action that affects price discovery in areas from agriculture to antiques.”10

Imposing the mark-to-market rule on U.S. banks caused an instant credit freeze, which proceeded to take down the economies not only of the U.S. but of countries worldwide. In early April 2009, the mark-to-market rule was finally softened by the U.S. Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB); but critics said the modification did not go far enough, and it was done in response to pressure from politicians and bankers, not out of any fundamental change of heart or policies by the BIS.

And that is where the conspiracy theorists come in. Why did the BIS not retract or at least modify Basel II after seeing the devastation it had caused? Why did it sit idly by as the global economy came crashing down? Was the goal to create so much economic havoc that the world would rush with relief into the waiting arms of the BIS with its privately-created global currency? The plot thickens . . . .

Originally posted on Global Research on April 18, 2009.

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1. Andrew Marshall, “The Financial New World Order: Towards a Global Currency and World Government,” Global Research (April 6, 2009).

2. Alfred Mendez, “The Network,” in “The World Central Bank: The Bank for International Settlements.”

3. “BIS – Bank of International Settlement: The Mother of All Central Banks,” Hubpages (2009).

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